Foundations of Mealtime Peace

Foundations of Mealtime Peace

Our Speech and feeding team worked together on this article to help you and your family achieve a more peaceful mealtime experience at your home. They came up with 4 foundations that can be easily implemented into your daily routine, here they are: 1. Schedule It is important that we establish predictable routines with mealtime…

Gagging Vs. Choking – Know The Difference

Gagging Vs. Choking – Know The Difference

Before introducing your child to self-feeding with whole/solid foods, it is important to know and understand the difference between gagging and choking. They are two very different experiences! What is Gagging? Gagging is common and developmentally appropriate for all babies throughout infancy. Gagging is the body’s way of protecting the airway of any foreign substance…

How Do I Know if My Baby is Ready for Spoon Feeding and Solids?

How Do I Know if My Baby is Ready for Spoon Feeding and Solids?

While many pediatricians have guidelines for when to start spoon feeding, the most important thing to consider is your own child’s readiness. The following items are excellent indicators that your child is prepared to sit in the highchair and happily engage with food: Your child can sit independently and hold his/her head upright steadily to…

4 Fun Food Play Ideas

4 Fun Food Play Ideas

Whether your child struggles with picky eating or not, food play is a great way to create positive experiences with a variety of foods. Food play is important for many reasons: – It allows for the child to interact with foods outside of mealtimes – It encourages development of fine motor skills – Food play…

Food Chaining 101 for Picky Eaters

Food Chaining 101 for Picky Eaters

Food Chaining is a therapeutic approach that helps introduce new foods while building on successful eating experiences. It is an approach that can be effective for all ages, specifically, selective or picky eaters that have a limited number of foods in their repertoire. Creating Food Chains In this approach, the child is presented with new…

What the CDC Now Says About Speech-Language Milestones

What the CDC Now Says About Speech-Language Milestones

In February of 2022, the CDC released an update of expected skills for speech and language development. This update lowered developmental milestones with no involvement or consultation from speech-language pathologists. The new milestones released by the CDC will likely result in a decrease of early identification and early intervention. Additionally, children may later be affected…